Societal Ethics

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I – Government is a method by which individuals attempt to reduce the likely hood of pain, suffering, hardship, and horror by assigning their individual powers to some form of centralized leadership. 

II – Each individual’s power is cumulative with every other individual’s power when given over to a centralized leadership. 

III – This investment of individual power manifests itself as government. 

IV – Government and the associated concentration of power are required for the persistence and advancement of a given society.

V – Government regardless of form will only as exist so long as it fulfills the needs of the individuals who vested their individual power.

VI – When a government fails to fulfill the needs of the individuals who vested power in said government, said individuals will withdraw their power.

VII – This withdrawal of individual power is destructive to said government and its associated society.

I – It is desirable for a government to be fairly representative of the population who have vested their power into it.

II – It is desirable for a government to benefit the population who have vested their power into it.  

III – It is desirable for a government to operate with some mechanisms to prevent over concentration of power. 

IV – It is desirable for a government to have clearly defined roles and responsibilities. 

V – It is desirable for a government to have a clearly defined set of basic laws.

VI – It is desirable for a government to be separate from theology.

VII – it is desirable for a government to be separate from business interests. 

I – All sufficiently intelligent and conscious beings have the right to be heard.

II – Some sufficiently intelligent and conscious beings will have greater rights to be heard.

III – Some sufficiently intelligent and conscious beings have lesser rights to be heard. 

IV – Those who have served the common good have greater rights to be heard.

V – Those who are educated have greater rights to be heard.

VI - Those who have been elected have greater rights to be heard.

VII - Those who have reached the age of an elder have greater rights to be heard.

VIII - Those who are dutiful and faithful have greater rights to be heard. 

IX - Those who have sacrificed have greater rights to be heard.

X - Those who have acted counter to the common good will have lesser rights to be heard. 

I – Laws are a function of the formation of government which occurs when many individuals invest their individual power into a single consolidated leadership. 

II –Laws are a collective attempt to force compliance with socially normative behavior by placing extra risk on certain behaviors.

III – Laws are necessary to reduce pain, suffering, hardship, and horror.

IV – Most individuals choose to support and obey laws as they help protect the common good.

V – For laws to exist, persist, and be beneficial they must serve the majority in some positive way.

VI – A crime is an action or inaction that has been codified into law as inappropriate of wrong.

VII – What is codified as a crime is dictated by cultural, societal, and religious norms. 

VIII – Codification into law clearly communicates what is considered inappropriate or wrong.

IX – Codification into law provides a clear punishment for a given crime. 

XI – Codification, enforcement, and punishment for crimes are necessary and desirable for the common good.

I – Punishment is a preset consequence imposed on an individual for being convicted of committing a codified crime.

II – Preset consequences, that is punishments are intended to deter certain behaviors. 

III – Imposing punishments is intended to bring some measure of justice to the wronged parties. 

IV – For punishment to serve the concept of justice said punishment should be appropriate and meaningful.

V – for punishment to serve the concept of justice said punishment should be appropriate and proportional to the crime.

VI – Punishment and justice are necessary for the common good.

VII – It must be understood and accepted that punishment is sanctioned revenge.

VIII – There can never be true justice as the consequences of any crime are permanent in some form.

I – Those in leadership positions must be held and in turn hold themselves to higher standards than those appointed below them. 

II – Those in leadership positions must accept complete responsibility for themselves and those appointed below them. 

III – Those in leadership positions must place the wellbeing of their subordinates above their own whenever possible and appropriate.

IV – Those in leadership positions must be willing to share the work and risks of their subordinates.

V – Those in leadership positions should never direct a subordinate to undertake a task they themselves would not do. 

VI – Those in leadership positions should pass the credit to their subordinates. 

VII – When necessary, those in leadership positions must be willing to place mission accomplishment over their own safety and the safety of their subordinates. 

VIII - Leadership must be earned on a continuous basis.

I – Policing is the concept in which a formal organization is empowered to serve a given population in clearly defined ways. 

II – Said organization is tasked with the enforcement of codified laws.

III - Said organization is tasked with the protection of the population. 

IV – Said organization itself must be governed by clearly defined laws.

V – The members of said organization must be held to a more stringent legal standard than those they police. 

VI - The members of said organization must be held to a more stringent moral standard than those they police. 

VII – Police can only operate by the mutual consent of those who are policed. 

VIII – Police can only exist so long as there is benefit to the population they serve. 

I – In highly intelligent and conscious beings’ evil is not a moral construct; it is real and needs to be accepted as such. 

II – In highly intelligent and conscious beings’ failure to accept the existence of evil is harmful to the common good and to the individual.

III – In highly intelligent and conscious beings’ evil thoughts, intentions, actions or inactions are those thoughts, intentions, actions or inactions willfully undertaken to cause pain, suffering, hardship, horror, or death.

IV – In highly intelligent and conscious beings’ evil thoughts, intentions, actions or inactions are those thoughts, intentions, actions or inactions that are willfully deceitful or morally indefensible.

V – In highly intelligent and conscious beings’ evil thoughts, intentions, actions or inactions are willfully performed for the sake of evil itself. 

VI – In highly intelligent and conscious beings’ evil thoughts, intentions, actions or inactions are often purposely obfuscated by the originator of said evil thoughts, intentions, actions or inactions. 

VII – An individual who is sufficiently intelligent and conscious, who has been shown to be willfully evil by thought, intention, action or inaction must be addressed with seriousness and care. 

VIII – It is beneficial to the common good to remove individuals who have been shown to be sufficiently intelligent, conscious, and willfully evil.

IX – The removal of an individual who has been shown to be sufficiently intelligent, conscious and willfully evil will only occur after every reasonable effort has been made to reconcile the behaviors of said individual with the common good.

I – killing is the purposeful termination of any living entity, existence or being. 

II – When considering highly intelligent conscious beings killing in most circumstances cannot be justified and should be avoided.

III – When considering semi-intelligent, semi-conscious beings killing can be justified given due consideration, care, and need. 

IV – When considering non-intelligent, non-conscious beings killing can be justified given due consideration, care, and need.

V – Wanton killing of any being is morally wrong.

VI – When killing for the purposes of sustenance the act of killing itself should not be celebrated.

VII – When killing highly intelligent conscious beings there will never be a circumstance in which said killing should be celebrated.

I – Capital Punishment is the termination of an individual’s life as a punishment for a codified crime committed by said individual. 

II – In some groups the threat of and use of Capital Punishment is used as a deterrent for certain codified crimes.

III – When considered from a moral perspective Capital Punishment should be considered wrong as it causes unnecessary pain, suffering, hardship, and horror.

IV – When considered from the perspective of killing highly conscious individuals Capital Punishment should be considered wrong as it would be an unnecessary killing. 

V – When considered from the perspective of justice Capital Punishment should be considered wrong as it is not a meaningful form of punishment.

VI – When considered form a societal perspective Capital Punishment should be considered wrong as it does not serve to meaningfully advance society. 

VII – As such the use of Capital Punishment is only appropriate in very narrow circumstances and only in no other alternative is available. 

I – Euthanasia is the act of a highly intelligent conscious being voluntary ending its own existence due to an un-recoverable illness. 

II - When considering highly intelligent conscious beings killing in most circumstances cannot be justified and should be avoided.

III – When considering highly intelligent conscious beings killing can be justified in very narrow circumstances provided sufficient thought and care are taken.

IV – When considering highly intelligent conscious beings’ euthanasia is a matter of informed individual choice. 

V – Euthanasia should only be considered as a final choice only when no other meaningful options are available to the individual. 

VI -Euthanasia, if consciously chosen by an individual, should be administered in the most harmless way possible. 

I – War is inevitable. 

II – War is inherently wrong as it causes pain, suffering, hardship, and horror.

III – All reasonable effort should be exhausted to resolve conflict before it escalates into war.

IV – Being well prepared for war is inherently right as it will serve to minimize pain, suffering, hardship, and horror.

V- When unavoidable war should be pursued with the intent to end it both decisively and unconditionally.

VI – When unavoidable war should be pursued with vigor, intensity, and intelligence.

VII – One must be prepared to cause harm due to the nature of war. 

VIII – All reasonable effort should be exhausted in minimizing pain, suffering, hardship, and horror, especially among those not directly involved in said war.